Honda has confirmed a two-stage development plan for Aston Martin’s 2027 Formula 1 power unit, with an initial upgrade targeted for Melbourne and a second major improvement expected around the eighth Grand Prix of the season, currently scheduled for Monaco. The Japanese manufacturer has acknowledged that its first development step will not be enough to close the gap to the leading engine suppliers, making further progress with its internal combustion engine a central priority.
Aston Martin’s difficult 2026 Formula 1 campaign has forced the Silverstone-based team to look further ahead than many of its rivals. The current results have fallen well short of expectations, but the challenges have also made this season an important opportunity to understand what must change if Aston Martin is to achieve the ambitious objectives established several months ago.
One of the areas requiring the greatest improvement is the power unit. Honda, which began its partnership with Aston Martin this season, has developed a programme based on successive upgrades rather than introducing one enormous package of modifications intended to bring its V6 immediately up to the level of the competition.
Honda confirms two major Aston Martin F1 engine upgrades for 2027
The first stage of Honda’s development programme has been planned for Melbourne, where the manufacturer intends to introduce an updated power unit aimed at helping Aston Martin reduce its performance deficit. The revisions should also improve the interaction and integration between the Japanese engine and the team’s 2027 Formula 1 car, the AMR27.
Shintaro Orihara, a senior figure at Honda Racing Corporation (HRC), has outlined the development schedule for next season. He confirmed the first planned upgrade in Melbourne while also identifying a second important step around the eighth Grand Prix, a target previously mentioned by Adrian Newey.
“As I have already said, we need to make several steps forward to catch up with our main competitors. Our aim is to introduce some improvements for the first race. However, we have to admit that even then, we will still not be at the level of the leading teams.”
Honda therefore does not expect its initial 2027 power unit specification to eliminate the performance gap. Instead, the manufacturer is working towards another development milestone later in the championship.
“We will therefore need another step forward. As Adrian Newey said, our aim is to introduce another major upgrade around the middle of the season, let’s say around the eighth race. That is our roadmap, and we are working to meet it.”
Monaco GP targeted for Honda’s second 2027 power unit upgrade
Provided there are no postponements or cancellations on the 2027 Formula 1 calendar, the eighth round of the championship will be the Monaco Grand Prix, scheduled for the weekend of 4–6 June.
That weekend is therefore expected to provide Honda with the opportunity to introduce its second major power unit development package. The timing gives Aston Martin a defined objective for the opening phase of the season, with the first specification intended to deliver progress before further improvements arrive in Monaco.
However, Honda has made clear that recovering the performance lost to its competitors will require several development stages. The manufacturer is not expecting an immediate transformation, and its current strategy reflects the need to improve the engine progressively while strengthening its integration with the Aston Martin chassis.
Honda identifies internal combustion engine as biggest F1 weakness
Shintaro Orihara acknowledged that Honda’s development efforts will focus primarily on the internal combustion engine, which has been identified as one of the least competitive elements of its current power unit.
This decision is particularly important because the balance between combustion and electrical power in the new-generation Formula 1 engines is set to change from 2027. The current approximately equal division will no longer apply, with the internal combustion engine becoming increasingly important in the overall performance of the power unit.
The planned changes mean that improving the efficiency and output of Honda’s combustion engine will be even more valuable next season. Engineers in Japan are therefore concentrating their efforts on an area that should have a greater influence on competitiveness as the technical regulations evolve.
“Our weak point is definitely the internal combustion engine. We are therefore working very hard to improve it, especially with next year in mind. Engine performance will be more important than it is this year. So yes, this is a fundamental area for us.”
The admission confirms that Honda recognises the scale of the work required to bring Aston Martin closer to its main rivals. Although improvements to energy management and drivability remain important, the combustion engine represents a central part of the manufacturer’s 2027 development programme.
Honda’s latest turbo lag improvements deliver encouraging results
While preparing for the following season, Honda has continued developing its current power unit, which has been the least competitive in the Formula 1 field. The most recent update introduced at Singapore was intended to address the turbo lag problems that have repeatedly affected Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll throughout the 2026 campaign.
Those difficulties have complicated the drivers’ ability to obtain consistent power delivery, particularly when accelerating out of corners. Honda has consequently worked on revising its control strategies to improve the response of the turbocharged engine.
“After Singapore, we updated some of our control strategies to improve turbo lag. We made some adjustments during free practice and, during the race, we verified that everything was working well, as expected.”
The progress achieved at the United States Grand Prix also extended to the management of the hybrid power unit’s energy deployment.
“So that is a small positive for us this weekend: we saw that the updated strategy works well in managing turbo lag. We also optimised the energy management settings for this weekend and confirmed during the race that they were working as expected.”
Although these improvements do not eliminate Aston Martin’s overall performance deficit, they represent encouraging feedback for Honda’s engineers. The manufacturer has demonstrated that changes to its control systems can improve the behaviour of the existing power unit, even before the more substantial developments planned for 2027.
Fernando Alonso’s Austin race compromised by Alexander Albon collision
Despite the improvements achieved on the power unit side, Aston Martin’s United States Grand Prix was effectively compromised during the opening lap.
The team’s realistic hopes of scoring points suffered a major setback at Turn 11, where Fernando Alonso was hit by Alexander Albon’s Williams. The collision caused extensive damage to parts of the bargeboard area and the floor of the Aston Martin, severely affecting its aerodynamic performance.
The scale of the setback was particularly frustrating given the pace Fernando Alonso subsequently managed to demonstrate despite driving a heavily damaged car. His performance suggested that Aston Martin had a reasonable opportunity to challenge for points under more favourable circumstances.
“Unfortunately, however, the car suffered some damage during the opening lap, so we were unable to achieve the objectives we had set ourselves.”
The incident prevented Aston Martin from converting the improvements made during the weekend into the result it had hoped for. Nevertheless, Honda was able to gather useful information about the performance and operation of its power unit.
Honda takes positives from Austin despite Aston Martin’s difficult season
Although the race result was disappointing, Shintaro Orihara emphasised that Honda had experienced a relatively trouble-free weekend from a power unit perspective.
“Overall, however, as far as the power unit is concerned, it was a weekend without any particular problems, with regular sessions and a good amount of running on track,” he concluded.
That reliability and the successful implementation of the revised turbo lag and energy management strategies provide Honda with useful foundations as it continues working towards its more ambitious 2027 targets.
The challenge facing Aston Martin remains considerable. The first planned engine development is not expected to eliminate the gap to the leading teams, while a second important step is being targeted for Monaco. Much will depend on Honda’s ability to improve its internal combustion engine and translate that progress into a more competitive package alongside the AMR27.
For Fernando Alonso, Lance Stroll and the entire Silverstone operation, the priority is to make meaningful progress after a season that has fallen short of expectations. Honda’s two-stage development schedule now offers a clearer indication of when Aston Martin hopes to begin closing the performance gap in 2027.
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